Since 1999, when the Mountain West Conference started holding a season-ending volleyball tournament, Colorado State has quietly evolved into a national powerhouse.
The Rams own four of eight MWC championships and have twice finished as runners-up. They are 17-4 all-time in the tournament and, with targets firmly on their backs, are the defending title-holders as the tournament plays out in Las Vegas this weekend.
CSU, in other words, has become the face of collegiate volleyball in the mountain region.
With the NCAA Tournament around the corner — Selection Sunday follows the conclusion of the MWC tournament this weekend — CSU is gearing up for a run at the national title. The Rams have a shot at a top-16 seed nationally and could host an early-round game.
But first things first. The Rams defeated San Diego State in a quarterfinal game late Thursday. The semifinals are scheduled for tonight with CSU facing No. 5 Utah. The title game will be played Saturday.
CSU (22-6) has a lot going for it. Among 22 wins this season, 18 have been sweeps. Excluding No. 2 seed Nevada-Las Vegas, the Rams have swept each of their conference opponents this season at least once. And they have an impressive upset of then-No. 13-ranked Ohio State earlier this season.
Mekana Barnes, a 6-foot junior blocker from ThunderRidge High School, leads the Rams with the nation’s ninth-best attack percentage (.415). And her 158 blocked shots this season rank fourth in the nation.
Barnes, the conference most valuable player, joined teammates Ashley Fornstrom, Jaime Strauss and Tonya Mokelki on the all-conference team.
The Rams must navigate the MWC tournament this weekend. But if they continue on the run they’ve been on, the conference could become a sidenote to a national run.
STAY ON THE COUCH
“Respect my authori-tay!”
ABC and ESPN this season have used celebrities of varying degree or otherwise famous alumni from each school to introduce the starting lineups for college football broadcasts. So when Colorado takes on Nebraska today at 10 a.m. on KMGH-7, ABC will go outside the box and use a foul-mouthed fictional fourth-grader to introduce the Buffs. Eric Cartman of Comedy Central’s animated “South Park” — with the help of CU alums Trey Parker, Matt Stone and Eric Stough — will bleep his way through the lineups.
GET OFF THE COUCH
Good race for Turkey Day gobblers.
If you missed out on the slew of Thanksgiving Day races and runs Thursday, fret not. Saturday is your day to catch up. The Gobbler Chase 5K snowshoe race at Copper Mountain, which benefits the Advocates for Victims of Assault, will be a good post-gorge workout. The race, which starts at 11 a.m., should have both plenty of snow and decent weather. Check for more information.
WHAT WE’D LIKE TO SEE
Helio in a spin.
Since it likely won’t be mentioned in the other sports pages in this town, let us fill the void. Star race-car driver Helio Castroneves will be going against Marie Osmond and Scary Spice in the finals of “Dancing With the Stars,” running on ABC (KMGH-7) opposite “Monday Night Football” at 7 p.m. Is it a sport? No. Is a reality TV show about a celebrity dancing competition annoying? Not any more than the “commentary” from Ron Jaworski and Tony Kornheiser on MNF.
WEAK IN REVIEW
So senseless.
Troy Tulowitzki, a whiz defensively at shortstop, lost the NL rookie of the year award because Milwaukee’s Ryan Braun, the winner, had better power numbers. And power trumps defense. But slugger Matt Holliday missed out on the NL MVP award because, they say, Philadelphia’s Jimmy Rollins was a better defender. And defense trumps power. Something here is amiss.
AROUND THE STATE
Loaded with talent.
Get it out of the way now before the ha-ha factor loses steam: Yes, in fact, that is freshman Brittany Spears who paces the Colorado women’s basketball team through two games this season, averaging 17.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 3.5 steals. She’s teamed up with sophomore Whitney Houston. The Buffaloes (1-1) this weekend host the 21st Coors Classic at the Boulder campus, in a tournament that includes Rice, Clemson and Siena. Fort Collins, too, has a women’s tournament. Colorado State (0-4) hosts Navy, Creighton and Kent State in the Rocky Mountain Invitational. Early-season college basketball can be hit-or-miss. But the two tournaments will give area hoops fans a chance to see some teams that don’t often visit the state. Clemson and Siena, for example, are making their first trips to Boulder.
